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Alcohol: Forbidden in Judaism?

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Submitted By streetballr
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Alcohol: Permitted or Forbidden in Judaism?

Alcohol use in Jewish Law is contradicting. There are several examples in the Torah and other Jewish sources, where alcohol, which is most of the time wine, is permitted and sometimes even suggest but on the other hand, sometime alcohol is condemned. I will discuss the different sides and state what the Jewish Law is trying to allow or condemn alcohol use and abuse.

In places in the Torah wine seems to be a very important attribute to several different occasions in Judaism. Wine is used for Havdallah and Kiddush on every Sabbath and many other Jewish holidays. Mitzvot and blessings are recited on a cup of win. Under the Chupah we bless the couple over a cup of wine, a circumcision we do the same and we also have four cups of wine at the Passover Seder. Even in text, wine is described as “bringing joy to God and man”(Judges 9:13). Even during the Holy Temple days, wine was used for sacrifice and even has it even has its own blessing (Hagafen).

Even with all of these uses of wine for Jewish circumstances, the Torah clearly states “Do not drink wine or strong drink, neither you nor your sons with you, when you come into the tent of meeting, so that you will not die—it is a perpetual statute throughout your generations…”(Leviticus 10:9) The Torah is very clear in that drinking wine is not permitted. Noah, whose righteousness help God spare the world, was condemned for his excessive wine consumption. Other texts also condemn wine and its consumption “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. (Proverbs 20:1) Proverbs uses some strong language against any time of alcohol consumption and says that only the not wise people drink.

The question is what is wine and alcohol consumption to Jewish Law? On one hand, it is normal and even suggested to drink wine for

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